Smart’s sleek #6 flagship will be unveiled later this year as the brand’s quickest and most advanced model to date, packing reserves of more than 630bhp in its most potent form.
The rakish four-door saloon will be positioned as a rival to the Tesla Model 3, a car it will have a similar footprint to. It has been designed with a focus on range so will feature the slipperiest body of any Smart model to date.
Autocar has been told this will allow it to offer “well over 800km” (497 miles) of range in its most efficient form, although that figure is based on the generous Chinese CLTC test cycle. On the WLTP cycle used in Europe, it is expected to return a figure close to the Model 3 Long Range Rear-Wheel Drive’s 436 miles.
The saloon, which is twinned with the Zeekr 007 and upcoming Polestar 5, will be shown for the first time in the second half of 2025 before reaching UK showrooms in early 2026.
While predominantly developed as an electric car, the #6 will also be offered with a plug-in hybrid drivetrain as part of a move to fill sales gaps in markets where EVs have yet to take off.
Secrecy still surrounds the styling of the new saloon, which like all of Smart’s current models has been designed by a team at Mercedes-Benz headed by Smart design boss Kai Sieber.
However, Autocar understands that it will adopt a distinctive raked roofline together with detailing and surfacing treatment similar to the #1, #3 and #5. Like those cars, the #6 will also feature frameless doors and wheels that range from 19in to 21in.
Smart’s maiden saloon is based on the Geely-developed PMA2+ platform – a structure derived from the Chinese car maker’s Sustainable Experience Architecture (SEA) for EVs that underpins models such as the Polestar 4.
PMA2+ can use 400V and 800V electric architectures – the latter of which is set to provide the #6 with a charging capability of up to 400kW. As with the #1, #3 and #5, it also forms the basis for both single-motor rear-wheel-drive and dual-motor four-wheel-drive powertrains.
Insiders at Smart’s HQ in China suggest power outputs will be largely in line with those of the #5, with rear-wheel-drive models offering up to 335bhp and four-wheel-drive models boosted to 597bhp.
Heading the #6 range will be a hot Brabus model to challenge the Tesla Model 3 Performance.
Packing four-wheel drive and up to 638bhp, it is expected to deliver 0-62mph in less than 3.5sec and a governed top speed of 124mph.
A choice of batteries will be offered: a 75kWh LFP unit for 400V rear-drive models or a 100kWh NMC pack for 800V rear- and four-wheel-drive models.
